Elfwood
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Type of site
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Artistic community |
|---|---|
| Owner | Usify AB |
| Created by | Thomas F Abrahamsson |
| Website | elfwood.com |
| Alexa rank |
 83,282 (April 2014[update]) |
| Commercial | Mixed |
| Registration | Yes |
| Launched | May 1, 1996 |
| Current status | Down |
Elfwood is a popular web-based alternative art gallery and online community devoted to original science fiction and fantasy art and writing. It was started 1 May 1996 by Thomas Abrahamsson and claims to be the largest science fiction and fantasy art site in the world.
Elfwood was founded on May 1, 1996, by Thomas Abrahamsson, under the name of the "Lothlorien" project and was aimed at amateur high-fantasy artists. The site was hosted by the academic computer club Lysator of Linköping University in Sweden. At the time, its gallery consisted of three artists (including Abrahamsson), and all submissions and updates to the site were managed directly by Abrahamsson, with the individual users e-mailing Abrahamsson with their requested submissions or changes.
As the Lothlorien membership and gallery expanded, Abrahamsson developed the site's extranet in August 1997, allowing Elfwood members to manage their own individual art galleries and account information directly, without requiring webmaster assistance.
After a while, "Zone 47" was created for science fiction and modern fantasy art, and two years later the "Wyvern's Library" was created for written science fiction and fantasy submissions. A few months later, FARP (Fantasy Art Resource Project) was created.
In April 2000 the ERB (Elfwood Review Board) was founded; it is responsible for maintaining the rules on Elfwood.
In June 2001, Elfwood was closed due to death threats and reopened a month later. In July the FanQuarter area was opened. At the end of 2001 changes to Elfwood were put on hold so a more manageable system could be created. Elfwood was reopened in February 2002 with a new moderating system. After that, every update has had to go through the Elfwood moderators. Along with the new moderating system came Mod's Choice awards. These awards are designated by a star on the thumbnail and an icon of a phoenix feather on the page of the artwork. Each day's Mod's Choice awards can be found on the Elfwood homepage.
In January 2004 the sections known as Zone 47 and Lothlorien followed suit with the Wyvern's Library, merging to create the current SF&F Art area. Along with the change came a new layout for the whole site, as well as revisions to the rules. In November of that year, Elfwood artist Paul Cameron Bennett was charged in League City, Texas for kidnapping a 14-year-old girl, Margaret “Katy” Catherine Wilkerson, whom he met through a chat-room linked through Elfwood.
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